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2025 is proving to be a positive year for the Italian mergers and acquisitions (M&A) market: 1,369 deals were concluded (+8% compared to 2023) for a total value of approximately €73 billion (+91% compared to last year). The leading sectors are technology, media & telecoms (TMT), energy & utilities and financial services, which account for 65% of the value of the Italian M&A market. In particular, the TMT sector saw strong momentum in IT and software transactions, with numerous strategic acquisitions that strengthened the competitiveness of Italian companies.
Mergers between start-ups and innovative SMEs, through M&A transactions, are the key to:
- strengthen the competitiveness of the sector, creating more robust and attractive players;
- generate operational synergies and increase productivity;
- increase appeal to investors and large companies interested in solid, productive businesses;
- promoting sustainable exits that reward the work of founders and investors;
- stimulating the real economy through reinvestment and new initiatives.
The strategic role of venture capital
In the first half of 2025, Italian venture capital recorded 153 transactions (+18.9% compared to 2024) for a total of €443 million invested. Despite a slight decline in amounts compared to the previous year, the number of rounds is growing, a sign of a dynamic and evolving ecosystem. The ICT sector, together with the green economy, healthtech and fintech, is among the most active, accounting for 20% of registered innovative start-ups.
In this context, venture capital can play an even more decisive role, not only as a driver of organic growth, but also as a facilitator of strategic M&A transactions that consolidate the market and create value in the medium to long term. Mergers between start-ups and innovative SMEs offer multiple advantages:
- greater competitiveness thanks to reduced fragmentation;
- operational synergies that improve efficiency and profitability;
- attractiveness for large companies interested in solid and productive businesses;
- sustainable exits
Venture capital, therefore, is not only a driver of organic growth, but can also become a true enabler of mergers and acquisitions by actively promoting M&A transactions.
Towards an integrated and competitive ecosystem
In order to build an Italian VC and M&A ecosystem that is competitive at an international level, it is essential to:
- promote public policies that encourage partnerships between start-ups and SMEs;
- promote innovative financial instruments that facilitate consolidation operations;
- actively involve institutional investors and pension funds;
- promote successful exits as virtuous examples to be replicated.
Conclusion
Mergers and acquisitions are key to the growth of Italian start-ups and the development of a solid and competitive venture capital market. Through a structured and shared growth strategy, it will be possible to transform fragmentation into strength, generating innovation, employment and value on a global scale.
Lucia Occhiuto is a solicitor, founder of Occhiuto Legal and head of legal & policy at Italian Tech Alliance – (photo by Edge2Edge Media on Unsplash)
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